Songs of our Dungeon
by MerelyLily
Summary: I didn't know what I was getting into, talking to those two on the train that first day. I didn't know who was going to die, I didn't know the suffering that was riding towards us, I didn't know the betrayals to be faced. I didn't know the bonds that would be formed and broken, I didn't know the loves to be formed, lost, and won. [Full Inside]


**I didn't know what I was getting into, talking to those two on the train that first day. I didn't know who was going to die, I didn't know the suffering that was riding towards us, I didn't know the betrayals to be faced. I didn't know the bonds that would be formed and broken, I didn't know the loves to be formed, lost, and won. I didn't know that the rate of survival was smaller than the rate of death. I didn't know the pain we were all about to go through... but if I did... Would I have done it anyway? My name is Melaine Holbrook, and this is my song. A song of dungeons.**

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**Author's Note: **Hello! Thanks for clicking on this. This is just the prologue so far, which is just the sorting and start of the feast. Keep in mind that the rest of the chapters will be longer.

If you want a more detailed September 1st, you should read Kaylynne's Story, which has only the prologue also. Change Kaylynne with Melaine, and you'll understand basically things that did happen in this story, but I don't plan on rewriting. It was written a few years ago, and please ignore the bad quality of writing. It isn't that bad, definitely legible, but not up to my current standards.

So, yes, this is a story about five Marauders, where the fifth changes things. No, not everyone is going to survive anyways. This will not be ending with a happy-go-lucky, yay, the whole Order lived thing. Just different deaths, and different events, and my own spins. J Enjoy.

I really hope that I can keep motivated enough to continue updating regularly. I need reviews, and favourites, and follows! Please, if you want more, say so. I don't need massive reviews. Just say you read it, liked it, or hated it. Stay... constructive, though, please. J

Rating is T, for now (thought the prologue is just K), might change to M, later. Probably will, during the post-Hogwarts stuff, if not before.

**** **I mentioned before that this is just a little prologue, and the rest of the chapters will be longer (a lot longer, actually). I should also say that the first 3-5 chapters will probably be of lesser quality to the rest, and where I could use the most reviews. It's a weak point of mine, introducing characters and getting all the bak info needed out there without choking the reader, so that is probably something I'll focus on the most.

**Disclaimer: **This disclaimer applies to every chapter of this **fan**fiction. I am not K Rowling, and I do not own Harry Potter. I gain no profit, and I'm only writing this for my own enjoyment and that of those who read it. I won't be posting another disclaimer on this topic again. (I find it mildly ridiculous that a disclaimer is necessary on a site called **fan** . I understand the purpose, and all, but still.)

**Disclaimer: **I own none of the songs/lyrics that I will put in this fanfiction. When I put a song in, I'll disclaim it at the top of the chapter (probably), but this is just a blanket disclaimer. They're only there to add to the story (and because I'm horrible at poetry/song writing, so for all our sakes, I won't write them myself)

Also note I don't plan on making any effort to match the music with the time period. I don't know any 70s music, and have no desire to find any.

On to my spur-of-the-moment prologue.

** I apologize for the formatting problem that was here last night. When I came back to check it this afternoon, I noticed it. Last night, it was midnight, for me, and I had a math exam this morning. I was in a hurry, sorry for anyone who tried to read, and the person who reviewed, which I saw today when I came back to check. Thank you.

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**Prologue: The Sorting**

I wasn't the first to be called. That was an awkward-looking boy names Raynar Abbot, poor guy. He seemed terrified. Looking at him, I was glad my name was Melaine Holbrook rather than Melaine Abbot.

I was standing with the other First Years in a clump in the center of the Great Hall. My face was impassive as I gazed around in fascination. Looking at the expressions of the others around me, I could pick out the muggleborns by their expressions. Lily Evans, I remembered from the train. She was friends with the slimy one who cursed Peter with boils. There was a girl with blonde ringlets curled so tightly that they stuck out from her head who had wide blue eyes, and I deduced she was muggleborn as well.

I was standing with four boys, none of them muggleborn, surprisingly. By complete chance, I had made friends with two purebloods and two half-bloods. I could name a few cousins who would be pleased. The Holbrooks had two branches: mine, the Gryffindors, and the Slytherins. My grandfather, Hallidon who was dead now, was a twin. Hallidon was a Gryffindor, and his twin, Heffan, was a Slytherin. They hated each other, and when their parents died, they fought over the inheritance, unsure who was born first, and the will unclear. They ended up splitting it and going their separate ways. Now, I could name a Holbrook or two over at the Slytherin table, but on our side, there was just my father and I.

Mom was a muggle, and convinced I would end up in Ravenclaw based on what Dad had told her of the houses. Dad, however, knew I'd be a Gryffindor. For myself, I had no idea.

"Black, Sirius!" the strict-looking teacher announced, naming the first of the names I would recognize. Sirius was about as loud and arrogant as I was, and he winked at the four of us before_ sauntering_ over to the stool and having the hat placed on his head. It was a long time before the hat announced his house, but Sirius' grin never slipped. I hoped to maintain the same composure in front of such a crowd.

"Gryffindor!" the hat shouted, and there was a silence. Sirius had told us all of his choice of house, and we weren't really surprised, but the hall knew about the Blacks. Never had there been a Black in Gryffindor. The shocked silence continued in Slytherin, but Gryffindor broke out in cheers first, followed by Hufflepuff, and a more dignified Ravenclaw.

The next name of notice was Lily Evans, another Gryffindor. I also noticed the blonde muggleborn, named Kira Concorde, get sorted into the same. Then, out of those I knew, it was my turn.

"Holbrook, Melaine!" McGonagall stated clearly, and I made myself walk over to the stool, chin high, and sit confidently. I maintained a confident and dignified expression as the hat began mumbling things.

"Cunning, ambitious..." I didn't like the sound of that. "Brave, confident, loyal... Determined... Not hard-working enough, no Hufflepuff... close... intelligent... Ravenclaw... no, other priorities. Gryffindor... yes, yes, brave... yes... Slytherin... yes, yes. Very clever... Would do well... but no." I realized I was biting my lip anxiously, and bit down harder every time the hat mentioned Slytherin. I felt something wet and noticed I'd drawn blood. "Tell me, girl. Slytherin, or Gryffindor?"

My eyebrows shot up when the hat spoke directly to me. "Gryffindor," I answered aloud, though in a whisper. The hat moved in what might have been a nod.

"Very well. Do remember not to lose your cunning or ambition because they are traits defined as Slytherin, now. Gryffindor!"

The hat was pulled off my head and I was sent off in the direction of the cheering Gryffindor table. _Do remember not to lose your cunning or ambition because they are traits defined as Slytherin..._ I mused. When I reached the table, I shoved the thoughts out of my head and sat down next to Sirius. Lily Evans, Kira Concorde, and another girl with brown, spiky hair were sitting on the other side of the table.

"Took you long enough," Sirius complained jokingly when I sat down. I shoved his shoulder.

"You were up there a while, too," I countered, leaving out that the hat wanted to put me in Slytherin. I figured it wasn't the best was to get a welcome into the Gryffindor house. At the end of the sorting, James, Remus and Peter had joined us, as well as others I didn't know.

The Headmaster stood up and started making a speech, which I only partially listened to. When he started talking about things that this 'Filch' had asked him to tell us, he mentioned something called the Forbidden Forest being, as its name says, forbidden. I leaned over to Sirius and James.

"That name is too tempting to pass up, don't you think?" I whispered. Sirius laughed lowly, and James grinned. Then, the speech was over and suddenly food was fading onto the plates. There was _food_ that just _faded in._

I exchanged glances with the four boys sitting on either side of me, and simultaneously, we all reached out to grab various types of food,


End file.
